Button assembly for electric home appliance and control panel assembly using the same

ABSTRACT

A button assembly for an electric home appliance and a control panel assembly using the same are provided. The button assembly includes a plurality of button sleeves for receiving a plurality of push buttons, respectively; and a unifying member for joining the button sleeves, the unifying member having at least one flexible portion. The unifying member has a plurality of button sleeve couplers, each button sleeve coupler ganging together a predetermined group of the plurality of button sleeves, and the at least flexible portion has at least one group joining member for flexibly joining the plurality of button sleeve couplers. The plurality of button sleeves may be made up of at least two button sleeve groups, each button sleeve group having at least one button sleeve, adjacent button sleeve groups of the at least two button sleeve groups being separated by a predetermined distance. The at least one flexible portion has a predetermined length, the predetermined length being greater than the predetermined distance, to compensate for dimensional discrepancies in a control panel assembly resulting from normal manufacturing processes. The control panel assembly includes a panel having a plurality of through holes formed in an exterior surface; and a substrate disposed behind the panel. The button assembly is disposed between the panel and the substrate, and the plurality of button sleeves of the button assembly are respectively inserted into the plurality of through holes.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of Korean Application No.10-2004-0009707, filed on Feb. 13, 2004, which is hereby incorporated byreference as if fully set forth herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an electric home appliance, and moreparticularly, to a button assembly for an electric home appliance and acontrol panel assembly using the same, in which the button assembly ismade up of a plurality of sleeves, which are joined by a unifying memberfor collectively inserting the sleeves into a corresponding plurality ofthrough holes formed in a panel of the control panel assembly.

2. Discussion of the Related Art

Contemporary washing machines are typically provided with control meanscomprising a plurality of switches, such as tactile switches, mounted ona substrate of a control panel assembly for controlling one or more washcycles. The tactile switches are respectively positioned behind acorresponding plurality of push buttons, each of which is inserted intoone of a plurality of sleeves installed in a panel of the control panelassembly, so that each push button has one end operably coupled to thetactile switches and the other end protruding from the panel's outersurface to allow manipulation by a user. An exemplary drum-type washingmachine having such display means is shown in FIG. 1, and FIGS. 2 and 3illustrates an exemplary control panel assembly of a general homeappliance such as a washing machine.

Referring to FIG. 1, a cabinet 2 forms the exterior of a washing machine1 in which a tub (not shown) is mounted. A drum 4 for accommodatinglaundry is rotatably disposed inside the tub, to be rotated by a motor(not shown) coupled to the rear of the drum. A plurality of lifters 8,for lifting the laundry in the drum 4 to a predetermined height fromwhich the laundry may fall due to gravity, is installed on an innersurface of the drum. A cabinet cover 12, having a laundry opening 10centrally formed in the cabinet cover for accessing the laundry in thedrum 4, is mounted on a front side of the cabinet 2, and a door 16 forclosing the laundry opening is hinged with respect to the cabinet cover.A control panel assembly 14, for controlling operation of the washingmachine 1, is disposed above the cabinet cover 12 and is mounted withrespect to the cabinet 2.

Referring to FIG. 2, the control panel assembly 14 includes a panel 20in which a plurality of through holes 26 are formed as an arrangementfor facilitating user operation of the washing machine 1, a substrate 30disposed behind the panel, and a plurality of button sleeves 40respectively inserted into the through holes formed in the panel. Arotary switch 32 and a plurality of tactile switches 34 are mounted onthe substrate 30. To operate these switches, the panel 20 is providedwith a rotary dial 22 and a plurality of push buttons 24 to be coupledwith corresponding elements mounted on the substrate 30, i.e., therotary switch and tactile switches, respectively, to allow a physicalforce to be transmitted from the panel to the substrate. Thus, therotary dial 20 is used to select a wash cycle of a washing machine, andthe push buttons 24 are used to control the operation of the washingmachine.

When the control panel assembly 14 is assembled, the button sleeves 40,which are individually inserted into the through holes 26 from the rearside of the panel 20, respectively receive the push buttons 24. Thus,one end of each push button 24 extends through a corresponding buttonsleeve 40 inserted in a corresponding through hole 26 formed in thepanel 20, while the other end makes contact with a corresponding tactileswitch 34 mounted on the substrate 30. Each button sleeve 40, which isgenerally annular to correspond to the shape of the through hole 26,serve to guide the manipulation of the push button 24 for a smooth andstable operation and to guard against an abrasion of the push button'scircumference on sharp edges of the panel 20, which would result due tothe contrasting hardnesses of the material (e.g., molded plastic)forming the push button and the material (e.g., sheet metal) forming thepanel. Upon insertion into the through holes 26, one end of each buttonsleeve 40 is exposed on the user's side of the panel 20, to thereby formpart of the washing machine's exterior surface by joining a push buttonsurface with the surrounding panel surface and by creating a visualoutline around the push button 24. Therefore, for aesthetic purposes,the exposed ends of the button sleeves 40 are contoured, and thematerial forming the button sleeves is typically imparted with acoordinated color, i.e., a color matching or contrasting that of thepush buttons 24. For this reason, the button sleeves 40 are sometimesreferred to as “button decorations.”

The button sleeves 40 are injection-molded members formed for aninsertion into a corresponding through hole 26 and simultaneousreception of a corresponding push button 24. The button sleeves 40,which are individually formed, are respectively assembled with the panel20, by an assembly step of insertion into and fixing to each throughhole 26, which makes for a tedious and cumbersome assembly process,since the number of assembly steps corresponds to the number of pushbuttons/button sleeves. Furthermore, the large number of components(i.e., button sleeves) increases the part count for manufacturing thecontrol panel assembly 14, thereby complicating the assembly process,burdening assembly component storage and tracking requirements for thecontrol panel assembly, and increasing the likelihood that some numberof the button sleeves may be misplaced or lost.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a button assembly foran electric home appliance that substantially obviate one or moreproblems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.

An object of the present invention is to provide a button assembly foran electric home appliance, by which a plurality of button sleeves areformed as a unified body.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a button assemblyfor an electric home appliance, which enables a compensation ofdimensional discrepancies in a control panel assembly resulting fromnormal manufacturing processes.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a button assemblyfor an electric home appliance, which enhances assembly efficiency of acontrol panel assembly.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a button assemblyfor an electric home appliance, which resolves a product deficiencycaused by dimensional discrepancies resulting from normal manufacturingprocesses.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a button assemblyfor an electric home appliance, which enables a plurality of buttonsleeves to be joined by a unifying member having at least one flexibleportion.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a button assemblyfor an electric home appliance, which enables a manufacturing operationto increase an error tolerance.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a control panelassembly suitable for implementing the button assembly of the presentinvention.

Additional advantages, objects, and features of the invention will beset forth in part in the description which follows and in part willbecome apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art uponexamination of the following or may be learned from practice of theinvention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention may berealized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in thewritten description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings.

To achieve these objects and other advantages in accordance with thepurpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein,there is provided a button assembly for an electric home appliance. Thebutton assembly comprises a plurality of button sleeves for receiving aplurality of push buttons, respectively; and a unifying member forjoining the button sleeves, the unifying member having at least oneflexible portion.

In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a controlpanel assembly comprising a panel having a plurality of through holesformed in an exterior surface; a substrate disposed behind the panel;and the above button assembly disposed between the panel and thesubstrate, the button assembly, which is disposed between the panel andthe substrate, such that the plurality of button sleeves are alignedwith and respectively inserted into the plurality of through holes.

In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a washingmachine comprising a cabinet and the above control panel assembly, whichis mounted with respect to the cabinet.

The unifying member of a first embodiment may be comprised of aplurality of button sleeve couplers and at least one group joiningmember in accordance with a second embodiment. In each case, theelements perform a function of joining adjacent sets of button sleevesand maintaining a mean separation distance between the adjacent sets.The flexible portion and the group joining members are formed of aflexible material, such as a pliable plastic, to provide dimensionalflexibility between adjacent button sleeve groups and may be have aU-shaped form or may have a V-shaped form, a semicircular form, or asimilar form providing an excess length to the flexible material.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description andthe following detailed description of the present invention areexemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide furtherexplanation of the invention as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute apart of this application, illustrate embodiments of the invention andtogether with the description serve to explain the principle of theinvention. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a general drum-type washing machine;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing an example of a controlpanel assembly of the washing machine of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a control panel assemblyaccording to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a button assembly according to a firstembodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a button assembly according to a secondembodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of thepresent invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be usedthroughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, a button assembly 80 according to thepresent invention includes a plurality of button sleeves 82 forreceiving a plurality of push buttons 70 and a unifying member 84joining the button sleeves 82 and having at least one flexible portion.Though not specifically shown in the drawings, the push buttons 70 maybe respectively captured in the button sleeves 82, so that the buttonassembly according to the present invention may include the push buttonsin a unified assembly to be collectively assembled to a panel of acontrol panel assembly. In doing so, the above flexible portion alsoserves to join (combine) the push buttons 70 indirectly.

The control panel assembly 110 according to the present inventionincludes a panel 60 having a plurality of through holes 72, a substrate90 disposed behind the panel 60 and having a plurality of push buttons70, and a button assembly 80 provided between the panel 60 and thesubstrate 90. The button assembly 80 includes the plurality of buttonsleeves 82, having a plurality of holes for receiving the plurality ofpush buttons 70 and being respectively inserted in the plurality ofthrough holes 72, and a unifying member 84 joining the button sleeves 82and having at least one flexible portion 86.

The washing machine according to the present invention includes acabinet 2 and a control panel assembly 110 formed on the cabinet 2. Thecontrol panel assembly 110 includes a panel 60 having a plurality ofpush buttons 70, a substrate 90 disposed behind the panel 60, and abutton assembly 80 provided between the panel 60 and the substrate 90.The button assembly 80 includes a plurality of button sleeves 82, forreceiving the plurality of push buttons 70 and being respectivelyinserted in the plurality of through holes 72, and a unifying member 84joining the button sleeves 82 and having at least one flexible portion86, wherein the flexible portion has a U-shaped form, a V-shaped form,or a semicircular form.

As shown in the embodiment of FIG. 5, the unifying member 84 may includea plurality of button sleeve couplers 85 and a plurality of groupjoining members 86′ for flexibly joining the plurality of button sleevecouplers 85. Each button sleeve coupler 85 gangs together the buttonsleeves 82 of a button sleeve group, and similar to the flexible portion86 of the first embodiment, each group joining member 86′ has a U-shapedform, a V-shaped form, or a semicircular form.

A button assembly and a control panel assembly of an electric homeappliance (e.g., a washing machine) according to the present inventionwill now be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5. Thecontrol panel assembly 110 includes a panel 60 mounted on a cabinet 2 ofa drum-type washing machine 1, a substrate 90 disposed behind the panel60 and having a rotary switch 92, a plurality of tactile switches 94,and a plurality of push buttons 70 connected to and coupled with eachtactile switch 94. The control panel assembly 110 also includes a buttonassembly 80 being simultaneously inserted into the plurality of throughholes 72 formed in the panel 60 and having a structure that cancompensate for a dimensional discrepancy due to minute variations insize, shape, and/or positioning of the through holes or button assembly.The panel 60, which is an assembly component for controlling theoperation of the washing machine and displaying the operation status ofthe washing machine, is connected to the front surface of the cabinet 2by engaging a plurality of hooks 60 a with a corresponding plurality ofslots 52 a formed in surfaces of or adjacent to the cabinet. A rotarydial 62 and a plurality of push buttons 70 are provided on an exteriorsurface of the panel 60.

As described above, a rotary switch 92 and a plurality of tactileswitches 94 are provided on a forward-facing surface of a substrate 90,to oppose the rotary dial 62 and the push buttons 70 of the panel 60.The rotary switch 92 is activated by the rotary dial 62, thereby settingup the wash cycle of the drum-type washing machine. The tactile switches94 are activated by the push buttons 70, thereby controlling theoperation of the drum-type washing machine. A display screen 96 fordisplaying a current washsing status of the drum-type washing machinemay be provided on the forward-facing surface of the substrate 90, to beviewed through a view screen 100. A plurality of display elements, suchas light-emitting diodes 98 protruding through a corresponding pluralityof display holes 101, may be used to indicate the washing machine'soperation and controlled conditions.

In the first embodiment of the present invention as shown in FIG. 4, thebutton assembly 80 includes the plurality of button sleeves 82, eachbeing inserted into and received by the inner circumference of eachthrough hole 72, and the unifying members 84 joining the button sleeves82 to form a unified body and having a plurality of flexible portions 86that can absorb a dimensional discrepancy in each through hole 72occurring during the assembly process of the control panel assembly 110.

On the other hand, in the second embodiment of the present invention asshown in FIG. 5, the button assembly 80 includes the plurality of buttonsleeves 82, each being inserted into and received by the innercircumference of a through hole 72; the button sleeve couplers 85, forganging together the button sleeves 82 to form a unified body, eachbutton sleeve coupler being connected to a flexible portion that canabsorb a dimensional discrepancy in each through hole 72 occurringduring the assembly process of the control panel assembly 110; and atleast one group joining member 86′ for flexibly joining the buttonsleeve couplers 85 to form a unified body while absorbing the abovedimensional discrepancy. Here, the group joining member 86′ is aflexible portion.

Each flexible portion 86 or group joining member 86′ has a sufficientlength for absorbing any dimensional discrepancies occurring due tonormal variations in fabricating components of an electric homeappliance such as a washing machine having a control panel. The flexibleportion is formed of a flexible material, such as a pliable plastic, toprovide dimensional flexibility between adjacent button sleeve groupsand may be have a U-shaped form, as shown in FIGS. 3-5, or may have aV-shaped form, a semicircular form, or a similar form providing anexcess length to the flexible material.

More specifically, the unifying member 84 of the button assemblyaccording to the second embodiment of the present invention consists ofthe plurality of button sleeve couplers 85 for ganging together thebutton sleeves 82 of each of a predetermined set of button sleeve groupsG1, G2, and G3, and the plurality of group joining members 86′ flexiblyconnecting the button sleeves 82, which are divided into the groups G1,G2, and G3 by joining the button sleeve couplers 85. The button sleeves82 are injection-molded members disposed between the inner edge of acorresponding through hole 72 and the outer perimeter of a correspondingpush button 70, by being inserted into the through hole and receivingthe push button. The button sleeves 82 are stably inserted into thethrough holes 72 from the rear side of the panel 60.

At least one catch 88 is formed on the outer surface of one end of eachbutton sleeve 82. Preferably, an opposing pair of catches 88 areprovided. When the button sleeves 82 are inserted into eachcorresponding through hole 72 from the rear side of the panel 60, eachcatch 88 prevents the corresponding sleeve 82 from passing through thethrough hole by catching on a rear surface of the panel 60. Therefore,the catches 88 determine the inserting position for each button sleeve82.

As described above, the unifying member 84 of the first embodiment andthe button sleeve couplers 85 and the group joining members 86′ of thesecond embodiment each perform a function of joining adjacent sets ofbutton sleeves and maintaining a mean separation distance between theadjacent sets. A predetermined number (i.e., a set) of button sleeves 82of any group, e.g., two adjacent button sleeves, can be arranged invariety of control panel patterns, as desired, for example, a linear,curved, or grid pattern. Also, in the second embodiment of the presentinvention, the group joining members 86′ join the groups G1, G2, and G3,which are divided by the button sleeve couplers 85, to form an assemblyof button sleeves as a unified body. Therefore, the button sleeves 82 ofthe button assembly 80 are simultaneously inserted into the throughholes 72, thereby simplifying the assembly process of the control panelassembly 110.

The flexible portions 86 of the first embodiment and the group joiningmembers 86′ of the second embodiment are formed to have a U-shape (or aV-shape or a semicircular shape) and absorb the dimensional discrepancyoccurring between each of the button sleeves 82. Meanwhile, thedimensional discrepancy occurs during the fabrication process of thebutton sleeves 82 and the through holes 72 of the button assembly 80. Inother words, the dimensional discrepancy may occur during theinjection-molding process of the button assembly 80 or may occur duringthe perforation process of the through holes 72 in the panel 60. Sincethe button assembly 80 is formed as a single body, to enable the buttonsleeves 82 of the button assembly 80 to be simultaneously assembled withthe through holes 72 of the panel 60, the influence of the dimensionaldiscrepancy may be greater in the present invention than as comparedwith the related art button assembly, where the button sleeves areindividually inserted into the through holes.

In the second embodiment of the present invention, however, theplurality of group joining members 86′ can flexibly expand and contractin back-and-forth directions and in left-and-right directions, therebycompensating the degree of modification caused by the dimensionaldiscrepancy occurring between each of the groups G1, G2, and G3. Inaddition, although a small degree of dimensional discrepancy may occurbetween the button sleeves 82 and the through holes 72, the dimensionaldiscrepancy can be compensated by the flexible portions of the buttonassembly according to the first embodiment of the present invention,which are formed of a flexible material, thereby facilitating theassembly of the button assembly 80 to the panel 60.

The assembly process of the control panel assembly of the drum-typewashing machine according to the present invention will now be describedin detail. The button assembly 80 is assembled to the panel 60 from therear side thereof, so that the plurality of button sleeves 82 aresimultaneously inserted into the plurality of through holes 72 formed inthe panel 60. At this point, when dimensional discrepancy occurs duringthe injection-molding process of the button assembly 80 or during theperforation process of the through holes 72 in the panel 60, some of thebutton sleeves 82 may be misaligned and misassembled with thecorresponding through holes 72. Meanwhile, the flexible portions 86 orgroup joining members 86′ of the button assembly 80 may expand andcontract in back-and-forth directions or in left-and-right directions inorder to compensate the misaligned assembly position. In other words,the flexible portions 86 or group joining members 86′ absorb thedimensional discrepancy occurring between the button assembly 80 andeach through hole 72.

As described above, after coupling the button assembly 80 with the rearsurface of the panel 60, the substrate 90 is coupled with the rearsurface of the panel 60, such that the push buttons 70 are respectivelyinserted into the button sleeves 82, which are in turn inserted intoeach through hole 72. At the same time, the rotary switch 92 and thetactile switches 94 mounted on the substrate 90 are respectively engagedwith the rotary dial 62 and the push buttons 70 mounted on the panel 60.When the user turns the rotary dial 62, the rotary switch 92 rotatesaccordingly, thereby setting up the washing cycle of the drum-typewashing machine according to the present invention. When the userpresses the push buttons 70, the corresponding tactile switches 94 arealso pressed accordingly, thereby controlling the operation of thedrum-type washing machine.

In the button assembly for an electrical home appliance according to thepresent invention, at least one unifying member joins the button sleevesto form a unified body, thereby facilitating the assembly of the controlpanel assembly. Furthermore, since the flexible joining members can alsocompensate the dimensional discrepancies, high fabrication accuracy isnot required when forming the button assembly and the through holes.Thus, the productivity of the control panel assembly can be enhanced.Finally, since the unifying members are formed of a flexible materialthat can expand and contract in back-and-forth directions and inleft-and-right directions, the dimensional discrepancy occurring betweenthe button sleeves and the through holes can be compensated, therebypreventing deficiency in the control panel assembly.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodifications and variations can be made in the present inventionwithout departing from the spirit or scope of the inventions. Thus, itis intended that the present invention covers the modifications andvariations of this invention provided they come within the scope of theappended claims and their equivalents.

1. A button assembly for an electric home appliance, comprising: aplurality of button sleeves for receiving a plurality of push buttons,respectively; and a unifying member for joining the button sleeves, theunifying member having at least one flexible portion.
 2. The buttonassembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plurality of button sleevescomprises at least two button sleeve groups, each button sleeve grouphaving at least one button sleeve, adjacent button sleeve groups of theat least two button sleeve groups being separated by a predetermineddistance.
 3. The button assembly as claimed in claim 2, wherein the atleast one flexible portion has a predetermined length, the predeterminedlength being greater than the predetermined distance.
 4. The buttonassembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one flexibleportion has a U-shaped form.
 5. The button assembly as claimed in claim1, wherein the at least one flexible portion has a V-shaped form.
 6. Thebutton assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one flexibleportion has a semicircular form.
 7. The button assembly as claimed inclaim 1, wherein each of the plurality of button sleeves is formed to beinserted into one of a plurality of through holes formed in a panel. 8.The button assembly as claimed in claim 7, further comprising at leastone catch, protruding from a perimeter of one end of each button sleeve,for preventing the one end from passing through a corresponding throughhole when the button sleeves are inserted into the through holes.
 9. Thebutton assembly as claimed in claim 7, wherein the button sleeves areinserted into the through holes from a rear side of the panel.
 10. Thebutton assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the unifying membercomprises a plurality of button sleeve couplers, each button sleevecoupler ganging together a predetermined group of the plurality ofbutton sleeves, and wherein the at least flexible portion comprises atleast one group joining member for flexibly joining the plurality ofbutton sleeve couplers.
 11. A button assembly for an electric homeappliance, comprising: a plurality of button sleeves for receiving aplurality of push buttons, respectively; a plurality of button sleevecouplers, each button sleeve coupler ganging together a predeterminedgroup of the plurality of button sleeves; and at least one group joiningmember for flexibly joining the plurality of button sleeve couplers. 12.The button assembly as claimed in claim 11, wherein the at least onegroup joining member has a U-shaped form.
 13. The button assembly asclaimed in claim 11, wherein the at least one group joining member has aV-shaped form.
 14. The button assembly as claimed in claim 11, whereinthe at least one group joining member has a semicircular form.
 15. Thebutton assembly as claimed in claim 11, wherein the button sleevecouplers are formed of a rigid material.
 16. The button assembly asclaimed in claim 11, wherein each of the plurality of button sleeves isformed to be inserted into one of a plurality of through holes formed ina panel.
 17. The button assembly as claimed in claim 16, furthercomprising at least one catch, protruding from a perimeter of one end ofeach button sleeve, for preventing the one end from passing through acorresponding through hole when the button sleeves are inserted into thethrough holes.
 18. The button assembly as claimed in claim 16, whereinthe button sleeves are inserted into the through holes from a rear sideof the panel.
 19. The button assembly as claimed in claim 11, whereinthe button sleeves of the predetermined group are arranged in one of alinear pattern, a curved pattern, and a grid pattern.
 20. A buttonassembly for an electric home appliance, comprising: a plurality ofbutton sleeves; a plurality of push buttons respectively captured in theplurality of button sleeves; a plurality of button sleeve couplers, eachbutton sleeve coupler ganging together a predetermined group of theplurality of button sleeves; and at least one group joining member forflexibly joining the plurality of button sleeve couplers.
 21. A controlpanel assembly, comprising: a panel having a plurality of through holesformed in an exterior surface; a substrate disposed behind the panel;and a button assembly disposed between the panel and the substrate, thebutton assembly comprising: a plurality of button sleeves for receivinga plurality of push buttons, respectively; and a unifying member forjoining the button sleeves, the unifying member having at least oneflexible portion.
 22. The control panel assembly as claimed in claim 21,wherein each of the plurality of button sleeves is inserted into one ofthe plurality of through holes of the panel.
 23. The control panelassembly as claimed in claim 21, wherein each of the plurality of pushbuttons has one end extending through one of the plurality of throughholes of the panel.
 24. The control panel assembly as claimed in claim22, further comprising at least one catch, protruding from a perimeterof one end of each button sleeve, for preventing the one end frompassing through a corresponding through hole when the button sleeves areinserted into the through holes.
 25. The control panel assembly asclaimed in claim 21, wherein the unifying member comprises a pluralityof button sleeve couplers, each button sleeve coupler ganging together apredetermined group of the plurality of button sleeves, and wherein theat least flexible portion comprises at least one group joining memberfor flexibly joining the plurality of button sleeve couplers.
 26. Thecontrol panel assembly as claimed in claim 25, wherein the buttonsleeves of the predetermined group are arranged in one of a linearpattern, a curved pattern, and a grid pattern.
 27. The control panelassembly as claimed in claim 25, wherein the button sleeve couplers areformed of a rigid material.
 28. The control panel assembly as claimed inclaim 21, wherein each of the plurality of push buttons is captured inone of the plurality of buttons sleeves.
 29. The control panel assemblyas claimed in claim 21, further comprising a plurality of tactileswitches mounted on the substrate, wherein each of the plurality of pushbuttons has one end in contact with one of the plurality of tactileswitches.
 30. A washing machine, comprising: a cabinet; and a controlpanel assembly mounted with respect to the cabinet, the control panelassembly comprising: a panel having a plurality of through holes formedin an exterior surface; a substrate disposed behind the panel; and abutton assembly disposed between the panel and the substrate, the buttonassembly comprising: a plurality of button sleeves for receiving aplurality of push buttons, respectively; and a unifying member forjoining the button sleeves, the unifying member having at least oneflexible portion.
 31. The control panel assembly as claimed in claim 30,wherein each of the plurality of button sleeves is inserted into one ofthe plurality of through holes of the panel.
 32. The control panelassembly as claimed in claim 30, wherein each of the plurality of pushbuttons has one end extending through one of the plurality of throughholes of the panel.
 33. The washing machine as claimed in claim 31,further comprising at least one catch, protruding from a perimeter ofone end of each button sleeve, for preventing the one end from passingthrough a corresponding through hole when the button sleeves areinserted into the through holes.
 34. The washing machine as claimed inclaim 30, wherein the unifying member comprises a plurality of buttonsleeve couplers, each button sleeve coupler ganging together apredetermined group of the plurality of button sleeves, and wherein theat least flexible portion comprises at least one group joining memberfor flexibly joining the plurality of button sleeve couplers.
 35. Thewashing machine as claimed in claim 34, wherein the button sleeves ofthe predetermined group are arranged in one of a linear pattern, acurved pattern, and a grid pattern.
 36. The washing machine as claimedin claim 34, wherein the button sleeve couplers are formed of a rigidmaterial.